Mom’s Chocolate Pudding Altered
By Emma
Certified Culinary Professional
•
Recipe tested & approved
A layered chocolate pudding cake with a rich cocoa sauce poured over before baking. Flour and baking powder combined with butter, sugar, eggs, and chopped semi-sweet chocolate form the base. Sauce with hot water, sugar, cocoa, and molasses substitute for corn syrup. Adjusted ingredient amounts and timing for a slightly different texture. Baked in a medium dish, yields six portions. Vegetarian and nut-free. Simple, slightly gooey inside, moist texture. Egg yolks add richness. Vanilla extract and espresso powder added for depth. Sauce poured over before baking. Thick edges and gooey center for contrast.
Prep:
30 min
Cook:
50 min
Total:
80 min
Servings:
6 servings
#dessert
#chocolate
#pudding cake
#baking
#vegetarian
#French-Canadian
#molasses
#espresso
#bittersweet chocolate
Chocolate pudding cake. Not just any cake. Sauce poured over batter, baked together. Gooey center, crisp edges. Moved away from corn syrup to molasses for a stronger flavor. Less sugar in sauce, more in the cake. Instant espresso powder sneaks in, bringing out chocolate bitterness. Bittersweet chocolate chopped, melts but still chunky. Egg yolk for extra richness. Vanilla. The water in the sauce almost steams the cake from beneath. Mid-height oven rack. Slow bake. The result? Dense but soft, dark chocolate syrup soaking through the cake. Bite blends soft cake with silky, slightly thick, cocoa sauce underneath. Vegetarian, no nuts, simple pantry ingredients mostly. Leftovers? Still good cold, or warmed. Not too sweet, balanced with the bittersweet chocolate and molasses. A comforting, rustic way to do chocolate pudding cakes. Minimal fuss, maximum impact. The change in chocolate cuts richness a bit, you taste the layers. Still melded but with hints of textures.
Ingredients
Sauce
- 515 ml (2 cups) boiling water
- 95 ml (3/8 cup) brown sugar
- 95 ml (3/8 cup) cocoa powder
- 45 ml (3 tbsp) molasses
Cake
- 190 ml (3/4 cup) pastry flour
- 7 ml (1 1/2 tsp) baking powder
- 80 ml (1/3 cup) unsalted softened butter
- 200 ml (3/4 cup plus 1 tbsp) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk
- 100 g (3.5 oz) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- 90 ml (3/8 cup) whole milk
- 5 ml (1 tsp) vanilla extract
- 2 ml (1/2 tsp) instant espresso powder
About the ingredients
Adjusting the water in sauce ups total volume to 2 cups instead of 1 3/4 to loosen syrup texture slightly. Brown sugar replaces white sugar, adding molasses depth, plus real molasses to replace corn syrup – less sticky, more flavor forward, more natural. Flour amount trimmed down slightly to accommodate more liquid in sauce and balance batter softness. Baking powder nudged slightly up to help rise despite extra moisture. Butter increased for added tenderness. Sugar in cake reduced to balance sweeter sauce. Bittersweet chocolate swaps semi-sweet, providing deeper notes rather than sweetness alone. Milk volume augmented for batter looseness and better mixability. Added vanilla extract brightens chocolate. Instant espresso powder boosts chocolate flavor, barely noticeable but effective. Eggs one less whole, adding a yolk for richness carefully adjusting texture. This blend yields moist, tender cake mingling with syrup layer forming pudding effect. A mid-size rectangular dish enough for serving six comfortably.
Method
Oven Setup
- Preheat oven to 175 °C (350 °F). Move rack to middle position. Grease a 28 x 18 cm (11 x 7 in) rectangular Pyrex dish.
Sauce Prep
- In a bowl, whisk boiling water with sugar, cocoa powder, molasses until dissolved. Set aside, let cool slightly.
Dry Ingredients Cake
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, espresso powder. Set aside.
Wet Ingredients Cake
- Beat butter with sugar in another bowl for about 3 minutes until fluffy. Add eggs and yolk one at a time, mix well after each addition.
- Add vanilla extract and chopped bittersweet chocolate, stir gently but thoroughly.
Combine Cake
- Add flour mixture in three portions, alternating with milk in two add-ins. Fold carefully until combined but not overmixed.
- Spread batter evenly into prepared dish.
Assembly
- Pour sauce carefully over the cake batter, do not mix. Sauce will seep down during baking.
Baking
- Bake 50 to 55 minutes or until edges set and center slightly jiggly but mostly cooked.
- Cool 15 minutes before serving warm. Sauce and cake contrast in texture. Spoon and enjoy.
Cooking tips
Start by heating the oven and prepping the pan carefully – adequate greasing ensures easy release later. Mix dry cake ingredients first separately; helps folding by avoiding overmixing batter. Beat butter and sugar thoroughly until fluffy, key for texture. Add eggs slowly to prevent curdling, each incorporated fully before next. Chocolate chunks folded gently to maintain pockets of melted bits after baking. Combine dry and wet alternately then spread in pan evenly. The sauce must be whisked vigorously to fully dissolve sugar and cocoa, preventing grit and lumps. Pour sauce slowly, avoid mixing into batter, vital to create the layered molten texture. Bake close to 50 minutes, watch cake edges for doneness; center jiggle indicates moisture retention perfect for pudding form. Cool slightly before serving so sauce settles but remains warm. The mix of textures makes timing critical – too long and sauce dries; too short and cake tastes raw. Adjust baking at altitude or oven quirks. Serve as is or with cream or ice cream for contrasting creaminess. Dense but delicate balancing of liquids and solids inside the pan makes this a unique interpretation.
Chef's notes
- 💡 Grease the baking dish thoroughly including corners. Sticky sauce can make removal tricky. Use a solid butter layer or baking spray with flour, especially on glass. Let the pan dry a bit before pouring batter to avoid slipping.
- 💡 Beat butter and sugar long enough until fluffy, nearly 3 minutes at medium speed. A fully aerated base means lighter structure despite density. Eggs added slowly prevent curdling. Mix each fully before next.
- 💡 When folding flour and espresso powder with milk, alternate add-ins in thirds and halves. Avoid overmixing or gluten will tighten cake texture. Gentle folding keeps bits of chocolate intact and creates pockets of molten chunks.
- 💡 Whisk sauce ingredients vigorously to dissolve sugar and cocoa fully. Any lumps mean gritty texture later. Let sauce cool slightly to avoid melting the batter on contact but pour while still fluid enough to seep.
- 💡 Baking time crucial to texture contrast: set edges but jiggle center slightly. Overbake and syrup dries out, underbake leaves raw batter. Watch around 50 to 55 minutes, depending on oven quirks or altitude. Use middle rack for even heat.
Common questions
Why use molasses instead of corn syrup?
Molasses adds depth, less sticky than corn syrup. Changes texture slightly. Flavor stronger, less sweet, more natural. Some moisture lost but balanced in cake.
Can I use regular sugar instead of brown sugar?
Technically yes but brown sugar adds moisture and molasses flavor. White sugar creates drier sauce, less rich taste. You can mix or just use light brown substitute.
What if my center isn’t jiggly after baking?
Usually you baked too long or oven hotter than expected. Check at 50 minutes with jiggle test. Cooler oven or shorter bake time needed. Also batter thickness affects.
How to store leftovers?
Keep covered room temp safe few hours. Refrigerate up to 3 days. Sauce thickens cold, warm gently in microwave or oven before serving. Avoid freezing; texture suffers, sauce separates.
